P5 Ratio Heuristic: Unchanged Total

Hi all,

Did you manage to solve the problem? This type of ratio question stumped many students. However, it is actually based on a very simple concept called 'Unchanged Total'. 

'Unchanged Total' refers to the total number of units of two ratios will always be the same regardless how you move the components. 

Here is the video:




Did you manage to catch the concept? Once your child acquired this concept, he/she will be able to tackle any type of 'Unchanged Total' questions.

Have fun!

For my newsletter this month, I am going to share a very useful tip on learning Math for young children. If you still did not signed up for my newsletter, hurry and sign up below!

(Sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j for monthly tips on how to motivate your child to study. A free ebook on writing is included in the newsletter.)

P5 Ratio Question

Hi all,

This is the P5 question that I will be showing in my video this week. Try and solve it using any methods! It is worth only 3 marks...

A : (B + C) = 1 : 2
C : (B + D) = 1 : 3
A : D = 2 : 3

Based on the above ratios, find the ratio of A : B : C : D.

Stay tuned for the answer!

(Sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j for monthly tips on how to motivate your child to study. A free ebook is included in the newsletter.)

Help Your Child Learn The Model Method - Part 1

(For those who signed up for my newsletter, you should find the free ebook, Art of Writing for Lower Primary, in the newsletter last week. Check your spam folder if you did not receive it in your inbox. I hope the ebook sheds some light on the structure of writing for the younger students.)

Now onto this week's topic.

Your child should not be struggling with Math and English in P1 or P2. The syllabuses are quite easy at these two levels. At P3, it is a different story. Your child will come into contact with heuristics in Math. 

Heuristics is not rocket science. It is merely a set of methods to solve word problems. It is not difficult if they are taught well and at a good pace. Children fail to grasp the methods when the teaching is rushed or it is being taught in a fuzzy way to them.

Take a look at the question in the video. I took this video from my heuristic course for P3. The heuristic involved is The Model Method. 



This question is from a P3 CA1 exam paper. This question can appear as early as P2 SA2. It is not a difficult question, but you will be surprised that many students struggle with it.

If you have a child at P2 or P3, let him/her have a go at the question before showing him/her the answer. It is actually a good revision for them.

Next week, let's try a question from P5 that even algebra (yes, the only powerful heuristic most parents are equipped with) cannot solve.

Have fun learning with your kids!

(Sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j for monthly tips on how to motivate your child to study. A free ebook is included in the newsletter.)

You Must Practise Writing (Composition) With Your Child! - My Personal 3 Methods

Many children are very weak in writing. Many students will score an average of 12/20 in their writing when they reach Primary 3. If a child can score above 15/20, he/she can be considered to be exceptional. Above 18/20 is very rare.


"Many students will score an average of 12/20 in their writing when they reach Primary 3."


How is this so?

Let's go back in time a bit. I love writing as you can see from this blog. I write both fiction and non-fiction. It did not occur naturally to me. I remembered very clearly that I hated writing compositions in my primary school days.

During those days, writing was a chore. Nobody told me why I got a good score and why I got a bad score. The scores seemed random. After a few rounds, I gave up on putting in effort. My writing was never pinned on the class notice board. My writing was never read out to the class. No matter how much effort I put in.

On top of that, writing was boring. I wrote on things that were supposed to be. I found a wallet and returned to the owner. I saw an old lady standing in the bus and gave up my seat to her. I saw someone tearing up a book in the library, so I told the librarian about it. Everything I write is predictable and BORING. I did not know how to improve on my stories.


"On top of that, writing is boring. I wrote on things that are supposed to be."


My friends who were better in English told me to read more books. I took up reading and read A LOT of books. However, my score for writing did not go up even the number of books I read went up. Reading alone did not help.

What was happening?

Then I read up on how to write. It was eye-opening. After trawling through many books. There is only one conclusion.

'How to write' is way overrated. The techniques on writing will almost destroy any love for writing. Any templates stifle creativity and kill the joy for writing. The question should be 'Why and for who I write".

"The techniques on writing will almost destroy any love for writing."

During my days of teaching, I asked many teachers how to write a good piece of work. Most of them gave me answers that my primary school teachers gave me. I suspect very few people know how to write well. In fact, I rarely see any teachers writing good compositions. It seemed like it is taken as a fact that all teachers can write well.

Please do not get me wrong. Some teachers can write really well. But it is too far-fetched to assume all teachers can write well.

Now, if they cannot write well, how can they teach writing to a child?

I am not claiming that I can write very well, but I dare to say I put in effort in researching on methods/reasons to help my students write better. There are mainly six strategies I use to help my students write well. I am showing you three of them below.


1. Structure

This is the most important part for writing. Structure does not mean templates. (Templates means memorising model compositions.) It is a way of sequencing to help a child think of the cause and effect in a piece of writing. This is exceptionally important for younger students in P1 and P2. They need some kind of scaffolding to help them organise their ideas. I use the CSPACE structure in my tuition.

(To know more about the CSPACE structure, sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j. A free ebook on writing is going out in the newsletter on 20th July.)


2. Conferencing and Recognition

Nothing encourages a child more than saying the good points of his/her writing. For me, it is very hard to not touch on the areas for improvement. So, I break the conferencing into two parts. The first part, I read the essay to the tuition group and list the good points of the essay. The second part, I pull the child out and touch on the areas for improvement in a one-to-one setting.


"Nothing encourages a child more than discussing the good points of his/her writing."


Conferencing is the ONLY way to help a child improve on his/her writing. Any writing with just a score is totally useless to the child if nothing was pointed out to the child. The child will continue to write at the same level in the next writing. 

Usually, I will touch on the plot of the story during conferencing. For grammar and spelling, I will create worksheets to help the child instead of highlighting them during the conferencing. Talking and discussion will not lead to improvement in grammar and spelling.


3. Questioning (Learning Moment)

This is more random and is tied in to the comprehension passages or any popular movies. For example, a few months back, 'Frozen' was a very popular movie. Most of my students watched it and they were discussing it before tuition. I joined in the discussion with them. I asked them about the plot and the ending.

- Who was the bad guy?
- Did you know that he was the bad guy in the beginning?
- How did you know?
- Was the writer hiding something about the bad guy?
- By knowing that he was the bad guy later, did it make the movie more interesting?
- In your writing, what are some things you can 'hide' from the reader and tell it only near the ending of the story?


Before I end this post, please go and surprise your child. Write a story for your child today and see his/her reaction. Then ask him/her to write a story for you. If writing one story is not enough, write five. Eventually, your child will catch on the 'writing bug'.

As parents, we need to practise writing too.

Cheers!


(Sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j for monthly tips on how to motivate your child to study. A free ebook is included in the newsletter.)

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Cheers!
Mr Danny Lim

Routine: The Secret To Productivity In Children - Part 1

If I could go back in time to change one thing when I first have Zenith (my eldest son), it would be setting routines earlier than I did. Routines would have smoothened many conflicts between Zenith and me.

I was at one end of the spectrum and my style was army style. I say this and you will do this. I say that and you will do that. You will not argue because I am your parent. How Zenith had suffered when I just started out as a father...


"I say this and you will do this. I say that and you will do that. You will not argue because I am your parent."


The other end of the spectrum is the 'give in to your child in everything' style. If the child wants a biscuit, give it to him/her. If the child wants the iPad, give it to him/her. If the child wants to watch television, turn it on for him/her.

Both extremes are bad. 

The first one will raise a child who will not know how to make decisions and will wait for the parent for EVERY SINGLE THING. The second one will raise a child who is spoilt and self-centred, thinking the whole world will give in to him/her.

To have a routine will eliminate the disadvantages of both the approaches. Routines will help the child understand and predict what is going to happen. Routines will help the child understand that it is not always about them.


"To have a routine will eliminate the disadvantages of both the approaches."



What is a routine?

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines it as: 

a regular way of doing things in a particular order


It is important to know that a routine is not a timetable. It is the order of tasks that is familiar to the child. Timetable adds stress to the child because the child will need to learn to read the time properly and remember the task tied to the specific timing. 

You will not want your child's attention to be divided when you first introduce a routine. 

Routine is comfortable because the sequence is fixed regardless of the specific time.


Example: Evening Routine

My children are very familiar with the evening routine. They come home, wash their hands, wash their legs and then get ready for dinner. Then, they bathe and they have their playtime. After playtime is reading time or worksheet time. Finally, they get ready for their final beverage (milk) before they go to bed.

We can reach home at 8pm or 10pm. The routine is always the same. The time for each task might be different, but the structure is nearly always the same.


"The time for each task might be different, but the structure is nearly always the same."


Routines are good for your child

1. Routines mean security to the child. The younger the child, the more he/she is afraid of changes.

2. Routines allow the children to be responsible for themselves and their environment. They know they are expected to keep the toys before moving on to the next task. They know they are expected to be ready for shower time after playtime.

3. Routines let the children know what is upcoming and they will mentally prepare themselves for the next task.

4. Routines give the parent a chance to teach time management to the child.

5. Routines free up time for the parent to do other household chores. My children becomes 'automatic' after a while and the routine becomes a natural occurrence. They will do the next task naturally and this helps me to handle other chores like washing the clothes or taking out the trash.


If your child still do not have a routine, I highly encourage you to set one now.

If your child has a routine, what is the routine? Can you share with the rest of us here?

Next blog post: How to set up a proper routine for your child.


(Sign up for my newsletter at http://eepurl.com/WDj6j for monthly tips on how to motivate your child to study. A free ebook is included in the newsletter.)